Happy Thanksgiving

Here we are - Thanksgiving week! A time known not only for giving thanks, but for kicking off the Christmas shopping season.

As someone who encourages people to be responsible in their spending I've always struggled with some of the holiday spending excesses. (at least excesses in my mind) But then I saw this polling data.

"a new survey shows that 69 percent of Americans would skip exchanging gifts if their family and friends agreed to it. The survey, conducted by Harris Poll on behalf of SunTrust Bank, also showed that 60 percent of those surveyed said they would spend more time with friends and family if they didn't have to worry about buying or making gifts." (source: Minnesota.cbslocal.com)

So perhaps I'm not alone in appreciating a simpler, less expensive Christmas with my family.

But don't get me wrong. We still exchange gifts. We just don't go overboard and shop carefully for whatever we buy.

Like many of you, I do most of my holiday shopping online. That allows me to take my time to comparison shop to find the best deal. I save my expected purchases in a wish list on the store site. After I've done that I make sure that I compare the cashback sites I use: Ebates, Swagbucks and TopCashback. You'll want to see which cashback offers the best % for the store you're buying from. You never know which of the 3 will have the best cashback %.

If you want to see your cashback end up in savings, you'll want to include Evoshare in your comparison. They'll allow you to have your cashback go towards your student loan debt or retirement savings.

Another way to save this time of year is to watch for discounted gift cards. Many restaurants and stores will give you a discounted card if you buy a specific amount. If it's a restaurant or store that you use frequently it can be a great deal.